The impact of teacher humour on teaching quality and student learning: An experimental approach

Structured Abstract Background It is assumed that teacher humour promotes social relationships and enhances learning processes among students. Nonetheless, there has been no systematic investigation beyond correlational studies into how different types of humour influence distinct dimensions of teaching quality and students’ learning processes. Aims We used an experimental approach in two studies to examine the impact of various types of teacher humour on experts' ratings and students' perceptions of teaching quality, as well as on students’ motivation and emotions. Samples Study 1 included 206 experts and Study 2 included 325 students. Methods In both studies, participants were randomly assigned to one of five experimental groups, in which they were shown video recordings of lessons that were identical in content but differed in terms of the humour used by the teacher. Subsequently, the participants rated the teaching quality of this lesson (teacher-student relationship, interestingness, clarity, time on task). In Study 2, students additionally reported on their motivation and their emotions while watching the video-recorded lesson. Results In both studies, results revealed that course-related humour promotes teacher-student relationship and interestingness (no effects were observed for clarity and time on task). Moreover, course-related humour led to increased intrinsic motivation, enjoyment and reduced negative emotions in students. Structural equation modelling revealed indirect effects of different types of humour on students’ motivation and emotions via teaching quality. Conclusions Our findings indicate that humour that is course-related can improve socio-emotional and motivational dimensions of teaching quality and enhance students’ intrinsic motivation and emotional experiences.